FROM THE ARTICLE:
It's still not entirely clear to researchers just how lice are able to sense the impending doom of their current host, but Craig Orr, executive director of the Watershed Watch Salmon Society, said it appears that male sea lice in particular are extremely mobile and able to "jump ship" very readily.
It appears the lice pick up cues from their hosts, Orr said.
"Whether it's vibration or visual or some kind of pheromone, it's not really known. But there are some cues they are picking up on that cause them to abandon ship. They're really quite tricky, and of course we never knew that they could do this.
I have personally witnessed the sea lice's "jump ship" strategy at work. I posted a fish a few years back whose head was completely freckled with 100's of lice. When that fish hit the bag, I could see the lice "jumping ship" as it thrashed in the net... perhaps there are stress/fear hormones being released by the struggling fish when this happens, and the lice are triggered to let go and swim for cover.
But just like people, some of them are oblivious and cluelessly hang on to their comfort zone.
These little buggers came face to face with their genetic dead end. Wait a sec.... do sea lice even have faces?
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